IOU
by NerfHerder101
Summary: Because it was her birthday, and he felt he owed her something. Sasusaku Oneshot


A/N don't like this one very much, but the last one I didn't like and posted got more hits than it had words. So… yeah.

Uchiha Sasuke is what one would call a man of few words, or no words. Most of the time it was because he felt certain conversations were beneath him and too idiotic for him to join. Other times it was because he was shocked and surprised and a little bit weirded out. It was the latter he was overcome with when a bouncing blond came up to him.

Ino grabbed him around the arm and dragged him into a small outlet store, which's entrance faced the market street. When he turned to glare at her, he was faced with a hurried shush before the girl began pointing at something else.

"Do you know what tomorrow is?" she asked mockingly, he didn't answer, staring straight ahead out into the street. Ino gave a little sigh, truth be told she really didn't expect an answer. "It's someone's birthday."

A scathing remark was on the tip of his tongue, but his attention was caught by something far more important than his annoyance at being toyed with. A pink head bobbed up and down through the crowd, making its way into a local bakery. Sasuke continued to refuse to answer, he didn't want to admit that he still had no idea what the hell was going on.

Quietly, Inoalmost blushed in rememberance that she had dragged her former crush into the dark corner of a building, almost being the word. Her iron will renewed when she remembered why she was doing this,that is pulling Uchiha Sasuke from the street by his right appendage.Sakura, who she had just managed to begin mending broken bonds with,had been downright sulky the past few days, the heavy tension collecting between her two teammates had finally burdened her shoulders beyond what they could hold and she had dumped it on Ino. Her birthday was tomorrow, she hadn't been home in days, her team was in shambles, and she was afraid Naruto and Sasuke would kill each other, deathly afraid.

Ino took a deep breath before whipping out a piece of paper"It's Sakura's birthday, you're to get her something if you refuse to comply with this request I have a contract signed by the whole of one Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chouji, and Yamanaka Ino, that promises one, Uchiha Sasuke, a punishment for not getting Haruno Sakura a present." Pause, breath, "Plus Naruto already got her one, and he didn't even need to be reminded."

That made him simmer in anger. How dare she compare him and that dunce on facts so trivial they weren't even worth his time. He immediately shook her off and stomped forward, making his way towards some unknown destination.

Ino stared at him, determination boiling underneath sky blue eyes. The fact that it was his teammate, Haruno Sakura's, birthday tomorrow probably didn't matter, even though it should, Shikamaru had come up with her last words as a backup plan. Bringing up Naruto issued a challenge to Sasuke and she knew even if he took all day and night he would get her something. His pride (because she still had a slight crush and refused to call it an ego) would cause him to search for a perfect present.

Sasuke was wandering to a far off part of the village, closer to the outer regions where the clans resided, and away from the marketplace and annoying girls. He came across the Uchiha Clan residence, the tape still covered the entrance forbidding anyone to come in. he ran his hand over the coarse wood and stood there. Memories washed over him and his rage grew, his sadness grew, and his helplessness exploded. He turned and faced green eyes.

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Sakura stared at him nervously; she had trespassed on hishome after all and it looked like he had ben doing something important.

"Why are you here?" he spit the words out, as if it took all his willpower not to throw up in her face.

"I - I wanted to find you"

They stood there facing each other and he remembered what the girl from team 10 had said, _tomorrow was her birthday_. He was maddened beyond anything she could imagine, he couldn't say anything to her anymore, so he walked away. Sasuke felt this was the only thing he could do, his anger told him to lash out at her, his guilty conscience –still troubled by her desperate interference in his and Naruto's fight- refused to allow him to hurt her. Maybe there was something else that stopped him, but he would never tell her _that_, she could come up with her own conclusions.

Sasuke left Konoha that night.

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When he knocked her out her last thoughts were rushed and pleading, begging someone to stop him and bring him back.

When she woke up, all she could think was, _'oh, it's over'_

The Chuunins who had found her on the bench had taken a statement and rushed off to the Godaime, leaving her in medical care.Sakura's dress was rumpled and disheveled, once sparkling eyes were dull and listless, tear stains ran down her porcelain cheeks. In an attempt to distract herself she smoothed out her dress, straightening the collar and turning pockets outside in to get rid of lint. No lint came out, but a carefully folded piece of paper dropped quickly to the floor and Sakura reached down to pick it up. It was simple lined paper, bent into a square with the words **_Happy Birthday_** wrote in messy chicken scratch on the front. Gently she opened it, smoothing out creases and laying it flat, her emerald eyes widened and glistened with something other than tears for the first time in weeks.

**I O U one Uchiha Sasuke's heart**

A few minutes later she begged Naruto to bring him back with every part of her soul.

A/N I apologize for the very pad pun in paragraph 5 and the small, itsy bitsy, teeny weeny (yellow polka dot bikini…) one in the last paragraph. If you can't see it, pray a little prayer.


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